Newtown pastor reprimanded over prayer vigil

In this January 2012 photo provided by the Newtown Bee, the Rev. Rob Morris sits in his office at Christ the King Lutheran Church in Newtown, Conn. The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod denomination is reprimanding Rev. Morris for participating in an interfaith vigil on Dec. 16, 2012, after the Sandy Hook massacre. The denomination bars joint worship because it doesn't want to appear to mix its beliefs with those of other faiths. (AP Photo/Newtown Bee, Shannon Hicks)

NEW YORK (AP) — A conservative Lutheran group has reprimanded a Newtown, Conn., pastor for participating in an interfaith vigil after the Sandy Hook massacre.

The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod said the Rev. Rob Morris of Christ the King Lutheran Church inadvertently gave the impression he condoned joint worship by offering the benediction at the Dec. 16 event for elementary school shooting victims with representatives of other religions.

The church constitution bars clergy from praying with representatives from other religions, including some other Lutheran groups, for fear of giving the appearance that theological differences about salvation and other doctrines aren’t significant.

In a statement posted Feb. 1 on a denominational blog, the Missouri Synod president, the Rev. Matthew Harrison, said Morris took “specific and commendable” steps to avoid violating the church’s constitution: Morris requested an announcement before the event that participating clergy were not endorsing each other’s views, and he read from Scripture.

However, Harrison concluded that the event was joint worship since other clergy wore their vestments and the vigil included prayers and religious readings.

“There is sometimes a real tension between wanting to bear witness to Christ and at the same time avoiding situations which may give the impression that our differences with respect to who God is, who Jesus is, how he deals with us and how we get to heaven, really don’t matter in the end,” Harrison wrote.

Morris does not believe he engaged in joint worship, but has apologized, Harrison said.

“I accept his apology,” Harrison wrote, and made what he called an earnest request that no one file a complaint against Morris under the denomination’s disciplinary system.

In a separate statement, Morris underscored the steps he took to avoid appearing to support other doctrines.

“To those who believe that I have endorsed false teaching, I assure you that was not my intent, and I give you my unreserved apologies,” he wrote. “I did not believe my participation to be an act of joint worship, but one of mercy and care to a community shocked and grieving an unspeakably horrific event. However, I recognize others in our church consider it to constitute joint worship and I understand why.”

A national spokeswoman for the church did not respond to an email request for comment Thursday.

The denomination has been struggling for years with this rule, which is currently under a broad review. The church constitution requires congregants to renounce “unionism and syncretism of every description.” A Missouri Synod pastor, the Rev. David Benke, was suspended for a time after participating in a Yankee Stadium interfaith service soon after the Sept. 11 attacks that was held in Yankee Stadium. About two dozen pastors and a few congregations had complained about Benke’s involvement.

The 2.3 million-member Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, based in the St. Louis area, is separate from the larger, liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, based in Chicago.